It made Kedar Jadhav and Manish Pandey for an interesting picture. In possible pools all slogging. Another perfectly hitting the ball, the other stroking it with pleasure.
When Rohit Sharma, Shivam Dubey, Mohammed Shami and KL Rahul also entered on a lazy Sunday afternoon, it was obvious that Jadhav and Pandey were striving hard to impress team management to get that No.5 or No.6 position.
Due to the former's bowling skills and street-smartness, Jadhav was favoured by Virat Kohli despite Pandey being in good shape. Nevertheless, Kohli was loath to use him as a bowler.
"It's not that he can't bowl. He wasn't used because our key fast bowlers did a good job. He offers you the sixth choice if the team feels the need for it if someone has an off day," Indian batting coach Vikram Rathour said before the nets.
Pandey is a fantastic fielder though, and he's got all the shots in the book to back up his case. He is also among those very few team members who can match the speed of Kohli while running between the wickets.
Should one think that by the time the next World Cup is played in India in 2023, Jadhav will be 38, and has broken down too frequently? By 2023, Pandey will be 34 too, but has better fitness and more ability to hit explosively. So, what is Jadhav's life if he doesn't bowle. Could India look at No.6 for better options?
That's indicated by experts including VVS Laxman and Harbhajan Singh. Rathour, though, opted to steer clear of the controversy about the future of Jadhav. Lately, Jadhav has performed a few valuable kicks.
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His 52 in the World Cup against Afghanistan at Southampton allowed the eventual semifinalists to hit 224, a number that offered the bowlers something to bowle at and avoid embarrassment. He also managed a wise 35-ball 40 in Chennai last month, versus West Indies.
Pandey hasn't played in ODIs since the Asia Cup in September 2018 but his recent white ball form, both for India A and for Karnataka and his buccaneering knocks in the T20s, help his cause. It's the Perennial.
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